Compassionate Swordplay
by Knightwolf
Summary: What happens when the sword fight is not external, but internal. A serious injury to Keitaro brings Motoko to terms with her feelings. MotokoKeitaro. One shot.


Hey everyone. This is my first Love Hina fanfic. I'm a huge fan of the series and I hope you like my little combo of romance and angst that I've brewed up. I don't own Love Hina. Love Hina was originally written by Ken Akamatsu and is owned by TV Tokyo, Yomiko, Xebec, and Production I.G, LLC. Don't sue me, for I have no money. Phew. Now that that's over with, enjoy the fic. R&R

**Compassionate Swordplay**

Motoko Aoyama held her fighting stance patiently as she grasped her unsheathed sword before her by its skillfully carved wooden hilt. Her mind was like still water, her body like a pit viper, ready to strike at a moment's notice. She appeared frozen much like an ice statue, never sparing a single millimeter's movement. Motoko's eyes were transfixed on the opponent who stood several feet in front of her, reading his every weakness and possible method of attack. Unfortunately for Keitaro Urashima, he was that opponent. He nervously held his sword up, not knowing what to expect other than a whole lot of pain, given his previous history of practicing Kendo with Motoko.

There was silence as they both stood there amidst the lightly falling cherry blossoms and large stone boulders surrounding them. A single blossom pedal wandered its way between the two. Slowly falling and tumbling down, time seemed to slow to a halt. The very moment the pedal touched the ground, Motoko charged at Keitaro with her sword held high.

"Haaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" was the sound of her battle cry as she ran swiftly.

"Aaah!" was all Keitaro could say before barely dodging her attack.

"Is that the best you can do, Urashima? Dodge like a coward? Stand up and give it your all. I won't hurt you…too much." Motoko said as she grinned, getting ready for another dash.

"Are you crazy?! Not when my life is at stake!" Keitaro yelled.

He then paused.

'Wait, I have to try my best. I have to be brave, for the sake of all the girls at the Hinata apartments.' He thought, finding again his proper stance.

Keitaro held his chin high and a look of stone courage shined in his eyes.

Seeing her opponent's returned determination, Motoko then charged again. Keitaro held his sword before him with confidence and a stone face. Motoko leapt high into the air.

"Stone splitting chop!" She screamed as she swung her sword down on Keitaro.

To Motoko's shock, Keitaro actually blocked it. He then countered with a swing that cut a slice into the front of her kendo robe, causing the fabric to fall, exposing her traditionally wrapped chest. Having seen the counter coming, Motoko instinctively threw herself backward to avoid getting cut further. Upon landing on her back, she let out a "Ow!"

"Oh, no! Motoko, are you alright?" Keitaro said, quickly kneeling down and offering his hand to help her back up.

Motoko reached up her hand, but then looked down and realized that her chest was bared to Keitaro's sight. Her face blushed to a beet red as she took in a quiet gasp. Then she grimaced angrily.

"Errrg, Keitarooooo!!" She yelled as she jumped to her feet.

Holding up her sword, she yelled,

"Secret technique, Tsunami Blade!!"

The powerful blast sent Keitaro screaming 500 feet into the air as she calmly sheathed her sword back into its cover. Motoko expected the technique to be as effective. What she was not expecting was what came afterward. Keitaro came down and hit his head hard on the stone boulder below. Motoko, realizing the seriousness of the situation as she saw droplets of blood running down the stone's surface, forgot about Keitaro's stupid act.

"Keitaro!!" Motoko yelled, running to him as fast as she could.

Keitaro lay there at the boulder's base, barely conscious. Motoko quickly knelt down and sat him up.

"Keitaro. Keitaro! Are you alright?" She asked, almost distressed.

Motoko held up his head with her left hand carefully. Keitaro looked up at her. Barely able to keep his eyes open, he was drifting close to black out.

"Motoko…it's…alright. I'll…be fine." He said weakly, almost whispering.

He then reached up his hand and gently touched her cheek with the back of his fingers.

"Motoko…I…" He said, before his eyes closed and his hand fell to her lap.

"Keitaro? Keitaro?!" she called to him, gently shaking him by his left shoulder.

Motoko then noticed his blood gently trickle down her left forearm from his head. She immediately yelled to the apartments.

"Someone! Please help! Keitaro's injured!! Somebody!!"

All the girls came running out into the courtyard to see what the noise was all about. Motoko tore off a piece of her clothing from where it was sliced earlier and held it against the back of his head to help stop the bleeding.

"W-What happened?" Naru asked, kneeling beside Keitaro.

"Is Keitaro okay? Oh my god, he's bleeding." Shinobu said, then noticing the blood.

"I'll go call an ambulance!" Haruka said, running back inside.

"I used my secret technique on him. Then he hit his head on the boulder. I think he might have a concussion." Motoko said, trying to stay calm.

"Well, we should try to make him comfortable by laying him down until help arrives." Kitsune said, kneeling next to Naru.

"No! That might make the bleeding from his head even worse." Motoko protested.

"Ooooo, are we playing doctor?" Kaolla Su asked curiously, running up to the group.

"Su, we are not playing. Keitaro is really hurt." Naru said, standing up and placing her hands on Su's shoulders. Su then became dead silent, realizing the seriousness of the situation.

"Then is there anything I can do to help?" Su asked.

"Run inside and ask Haruka how long the ambulance will be." Motoko said.

"Right!" Su said, before running back inside.

Keitaro's breathing became shallow, which worried the girls even more. The ambulance arrived within five minutes. Motoko, Naru and Kitsune accompanied him to the hospital. Motoko stayed the closest to him, feeling the guilt of causing this whole mess.

After he was taken into care, the girls waited in the waiting room. Almost an hour passed until a doctor finally entered the room.

"I'm Doctor Tsubasa Shirai. You are the girls who came in with Keitaro Urashima?" She asked looking over the tired girls.

"Yes. How is he doctor, will he be alright?" Naru asked as she and all the girls stood up from their seats.

"Well, he has suffered quite a heavy hit to the head, causing a large concussion. We were able to stop the bleeding, but we haven't been able to wake him yet. If we're not careful he could slip into a coma." The Doctor said, trying to be as straightforward as possible.

"Doctor, how long will he be like this? Will he come out of this alright?" Kitsune asked eagerly.

The doctor took a moment before answering.

"As he is now, it could take a day, maybe a week. If he does fall into a coma, there's no telling how long it could take for him to come out of it. As for the long-term damage, it's too early to tell. For now, I suggest you girls go home and get some rest. We have things under control. Visiting hours start tomorrow at 8am unless you are immediate family or a spouse."

"Okay. Thank you very much, doctor." Naru said, trying to hold back the worry in her voice.

The three girls bowed, as did the doctor before she left the room. Haruka picked them up and drove them home from the hospital. The drive was silent, save for the minute Naru spent explaining Keitaro's situation to Haruka. Motoko spent the entire trip staring out the window, watching the houses and trees as they passed by. Reaching her hand up to her cheek she still remembered the last thing Keitaro said before he passed out.

'Keitaro. What was it that he was trying to say to me?' She thought as she continued to look on.

When they arrived back at the apartments, they were greeted by the eager and impatient questions of Shinobu and Kaolla Su. They explained it the best they could as to not distress the two young girls too much. The apartments were quiet after that for the rest of the night, with everyone saying very little before settling uneasily into their futons. Motoko looked up at the ceiling, her mind plagued with the memory of her overreaction that turned into a catastrophe, until finally she drifted into sleep.

Motoko found herself in a large open field of tall green grass. She was wearing a white warrior's robe with red trim. The bright yellow sun shone from above, surrounded by a brilliant blue sky. A breeze picked up from the west and began to blow against her as she could feel its warmth on the side of her face. She walked to the edge of the fields where she found a forest of tall bamboo trees. As she silently stepped among them, she felt a presence very near to her. She looked around her until she saw a face hidden in the shadows of the bamboo trees. All Motoko could see was a silhouette in the shadows and nothing distinctive. The face grinned as it began to match Motoko's every movement. Motoko became impatient. Wanting to take this to more open ground, she started to run swiftly towards the fields. Much to her pleasure she saw the mysterious figure running parallel along side her.

Motoko and the mysterious figure burst into the open grasses where the figure was finally revealed. It was Motoko, dressed in a black warrior's robe with red trim. This other Motoko's skin was white like porcelain. Her eyes were black like charcoal and showed a fiery passion and malice, whereas Motoko's were a soft brown. As the two continued to run faster and faster along side each other into the open field, the sky overhead grew dark with clouds, blocking out the sun. The hard rain began to fall onto them both.

Motoko dashed ahead, leaped on top of a steep hill and unsheathed her sword. The dark Motoko leaped as well, unsheathing her sword in mid-air and came down on Motoko with a blade of black steel. The two warriors battled with fury in what has now become a roaring thunderstorm. As the rain poured down both of their faces, both their eyes remained locked on the others.

As the dark Motoko continued to swing her sword she said, "Duty, Discipline, Honor."

Motoko, countering every movement, then said, "Compassion, Mercy, …Love!"

At that last word, Motoko struck the sword from the dark Motoko's hand and thrust her sword into the stunned warrior's chest. The dark warrior fell back, her body slowly running along Motoko's blade, leaving a trail of blood along the shining steel. After falling to the ground, the dark Motoko dissolved into black smoke and disappeared. The thunderclouds had cleared above and the sun shone down once more. A single tear then ran down Motoko's face, dropped and fell onto her blade as she silently looked up at the sky.

Motoko awoke. Her eyes focused on the clock sitting across the room. It read 8:30am. Motoko quickly got up, washed her face in the bathroom down the hall, returned to her room and got dressed. She walked down the steps and made her way to the front sliding door. She was then stopped by a young, innocent sounding voice.

"Motoko, won't you stay for breakfast? I prepared something special to help ease everyone's minds after what happened last night." Shinobu said.

Motoko turned to look at her.

"No thank you, Shinobu. None for me. I have to go." Motoko said, turning back.

"Oh…okay. But where-"

Shinobu was then stopped by the sound of the front door sliding shut. She then watched Motoko disappear down the Hinata steps. The truth is, Motoko wanted to get back to the hospital as soon as possible. The reasons, she wasn't quite sure of. Regardless, she needed to go there and see…him.

Motoko arrived at the hospital and signed in on the visitor's sheet at the nurse's desk.

"Excuse me, which room is Keitaro Urashima staying in?" She asked the nurse.

The nurse then checked her records.

"On the second floor, room 230. You can use the elevator to your left." The nurse said, pointing to said elevator.

After arriving on the second floor, Motoko walked down the long hall, looking at the room numbers as she passed them by. She anxiously looked for the right door number. Then she came upon door 230. She stood there for a moment, unsure whether or not to go in. Then she hesitantly turned the door handle and opened it. Inside lay Keitaro on a white bed. The devise attached to his finger led up through a wire to a computer screen that beeped in rhythm with his heartbeat. The upper part of his head was wrapped in bandages. On the table next to the bed were Keitaro's glasses. After closing the door behind her, Motoko slowly walked up, pulled up a chair and sat down next to his bed.

She said not a word. Her attention was then drawn to his chest, to which she idly watched it as it slowly rose and fell. Then her eyes moved up to his face. She never really realized it, but she had never really admired his facial features before.

'I had never thought about it before, but Keitaro really looks different without his glasses.' She thought as she continued to look over him.

"I know you probably can't hear me, Keitaro. The thing is, I'm not even sure why I'm here right now. Maybe it's because I feel terrible for putting you in this condition."

Her eyes fell to the floor.

"Why did you have to come to the Hinata apartments, anyway? Everything was fine until you showed up. I was never able to get used to the idea of a man being the manager of an all girls dorm."

Her eyes then returned to his face.

"You know, if you hadn't come to the apartments, you wouldn't be in this situation right now. So, this is partially your fault."

She paused. Her face then contorted into anger.

"Why did you have to come here, Keitaro? There was a perfect balance there with Naru, Su, Kitsune, Haruka, Granny Hina and I."

Motoko stood up.

"And you shattered that balance! Now I have to put up with your perverted antics every day! Why did you have to come here?!" She said, beating her fists on Keitaro's bed. Motoko then sat back down.

"If it wasn't for you, I'm sure we'd all be better off."

Her voice and expression then began to soften.

"I-If it wasn't for you…"

She raised her hand and placed it over her heart.

"…I wouldn't have to second guess my feelings all the time."

Then she raised her hand to her cheek.

"I guess my anger towards the notion of you being a man has blinded me to the fact that you really have been doing a good job as a manager. You never hesitate to help any us when we're in need. You've always lent a listening ear to my problems and I know you've helped me to be strong when I've doubted myself. I've just been too stubborn to see it. So why do I feel so weak right now?"

Motoko stood up, leaned over and placed her hands on his chest.

"Please Keitaro, wake up. Don't leave us. The girls at the apartments need you. Please, wake up. Wake up!" She said shaking him. "Don't leave us. Don't leave…me."

Motoko was surprised at her own words, but she knew that for the first time since Keitaro had arrived at the apartments, she was actually being honest with herself. She sat down on the bed. Her heart started to race as she moved her face over his. She could feel her heart beating in her chest as she looked down at his lips. She then slowly moved her hands up from his chest and gently placed them on both sides of his face. Motoko then slowly, as if drawn in by some unknown force, lowered her head and pressed her lips to his.

After a long moment, she broke the kiss.

"Please, Keitaro. Come back. I've never felt this way before. I…I need you." She whispered.

Keitaro then began to stir. Realizing this, she moved her hands from his face and sat up on the bed. His eyes began to open and strained to focus. Finding the glasses next to him, he put them on, allowing clear vision to return. He slowly looked around the room and his eyes then became fixed on Motoko who showed a grateful smile.

"M-Motoko. How did I get here?" He asked in confusion.

"You hit your head on one of the boulders. How do you feel?"

Keitaro raised his hand and placed it on the back of his head.

"A bit of a headache, but other than that I feel alright." He said laying his hand back to his side.

"It's all my fault. I shouldn't have used such a strong technique on you. I'm so sorry." She said as she leaned closer, still sitting on the bed.

Keitaro noticed the change in Motoko.

"Are you okay, Motoko? You don't seem like your usual self." He said, noticing how close she was to him, still having a smile on her face and not holding a sword over her head in anger.

"Keitaro…before you passed out, you were going to say something to me. What was it?" She calmly asked.

"Oh, it was…" Then a blank expression came over his face as he searched his thoughts. "I…I'm sorry, Motoko, but I honestly can't remember."

The sound of those words pierced her heart like the sharpest sword. Tears started to flow down her face as she turned her head away.

"M-Motoko, did I say something wrong?" He said, confused.

Motoko could not answer him as she shed several tears onto the white bed sheets. For she realized that her rash actions the day before had caused something even more terrible.

A knock came at the door. It opened to reveal Naru and Kitsune. Motoko quickly wiped the tears from her face and stood up from the bed.

"Oh, Motoko. So this is where you've been. You should have told us where you were going. We could have went with you." Naru said as Kitsune closed the door behind them.

"Oh, hello Naru, Kitsune." Keitaro said.

Motoko looked back at Keitaro and then shot a look at Naru. She then covered her face and ran out of the room leaving the door open behind her.

"Well, what do y'all think that was about?" Kitsune said, looking at the open door.

"To tell you the truth, I'm not really sure." Keitaro said.

Naru sat down next to the bed and was about to ask Keitaro how he felt, but then she paused as she noticed spots of wetness on the sheets.

'Was Motoko…crying?' Naru thought to herself.

Motoko ran all the way back to the apartments. When she got there she locked herself in her room and remained there for the rest of the day. The next two days she would only come out of her room for meals and a bath late at night while everyone else slept. At meals she would stay silent, saying nothing to anyone. She would just stare down into her bowl as she ate. Then, on the morning of the third day, Motoko overheard Naru call down the hall outside her door.

"Hey everyone, I talked to the doctor and Keitaro's coming home today!"

The news broke Motoko out of her state of questioning thought and soul searching. A smile came over her face, as she became overcome with joy. Then, as she placed her hand over her heart, the look on her face turned to worry.

Keitaro arrived at the apartments in the early afternoon. With Haruka helping him up the Hinata steps, his balance wasn't quite right yet. Everyone came out to greet him and expressed how glad they were to see him come home again. Everyone, that is, except Motoko. Keitaro noticed this right away.

"Naru" He said turning to her. "Have you seen Motoko?"

Naru looked back at the apartments and back to Keitaro.

"Well, she's been staying in her room a lot. She hasn't said anything to anyone in the last three days. I'm kind of worried about her." She said.

"I am too. I hope she's okay." He said.

Keitaro and the girls then walked into the apartments.

After the sun went down, and the homecoming celebration was over, most of the girls had retreated to their rooms for the night. Keitaro found himself on the terrace looking out into the night. The full moon was bright in the sky. It's light cast Keitaro's shadow on the smooth wooden floor beneath his feet.

"Keitaro?" Came a soft voice from behind him.

He turned to see Motoko standing there in her eveningwear.

"Motoko. There you are. The girls said you haven't been coming out of your room very much while I was gone. I was starting to get worried." He said.

Motoko walked up next to him and looked up at the moon.

"Keitaro? You still can't remember? You know, what you were going to say to me?" She said, still gazing at the bright moon.

"Yeah, I'm really sorry, Motoko, but I still can't remember. It must have been something really important."

Motoko's eyes fell to the ground. Then she turned and looked at Keitaro. She took his hand and placed it on her face like he had those few days ago. After looking into her eyes curiously, a sudden look of epiphany came over him.

"I remember." He whispered. "Motoko I…I really…"

Motoko then laid her hand on his face.

"Shh." She hushed as she slowly led his face to hers.

Their lips both met in a passionate kiss. Keitaro moved his arms around her and held her close as they began to kiss more deeply. After what seemed like an eternity of bliss, Motoko slowly broke the kiss and lovingly stared up into his eyes. Then she formed a pleasant smile and said, "I know you do."

They then held each other on the terrace. The night breeze felt refreshing and cool against their bodies. Their two shadows formed one under the soft moonlight.


End file.
